In the Body of a Beast
by RandomButLoved
Summary: Shade had betrayed her and the pack for a human that hunted them for sport, and now she was poised for revenge against the mere child that had ruined the pack. Rosa would destroy that "profound connection" that they shared, even if it forced her away from the pack she knew and loved. No matter what happened to her, Hylian blood would be spilt and Shade would pay for his insolence.


_**Author's Note:**_ Now a while back I wrote a story called, 'Beauty and the Beast' for a dear friend of mine, however I was certainly not proud of it due to the many plot holes and hate that it received, especially since I skipped pretty much a third of Twilight Princess merely because I wanted to finish it and get to the end. Some asked for a rewrite, and for now I am writing three stories so I won't be doing that at the minute but this one chapter has been waiting here, so I thought that I would put this out there as a one shot and see what you all thought. So here is my friend's OC, Rosa, and I hope that I do the character and my friend justice.

 _ **In the Body of a Beast**_

 _{For my dear friend, which our love of Twilight Princess bought us even closer}_

Her back was arched, white fur rippling over the skin from the light wind, claws curling in around the rocks that served as a support for the natural spring beneath. Through the haze of morning, sharp amber eyes scanned the forest terrain, deeper pigments dancing across her orbs the further away from the pupil they got, black rings outlining the very edge of them. She had been poised for attack for hours, knowing the exact point when her target was to arrive in comparison to the sun's movement. They always visited the spring every time that the sun's rays tumbled through the trees, alone every time. She had planned this from the very moment that betrayal had whistled through the trees to meet her.

And yet, as she shifted into a low crouch, her ears pricked upright, sensing another nearby. But it didn't take her long to know who was creeping up behind her, and so she did not attack.

 _'I told you to wait behind, Lupus. You have no place here.'_ No sound emerged from her throat other than a deep imposing growl that spoke of dominance, power, and warning. The way that animals could communicate could only be harnessed by humans through magical capabilities, too far advanced yet for them. The shadow of another beast emerged from the mist formed from the gushing water behind the two, thick dark fur rustling around a pair of green eyes.

 _He will kill you for this, Rosa,'_ the second, Lupus, responded curtly, physically stronger and older than Rosa, however knew of his companion's tendencies. He had suspicions about the attack for numerous days, though didn't believe that the younger wolf would act. However, he had clearly underestimated his companion. _'I know how much you care for your life. Even Ula knows.'_

 _'I'll be long gone before he even arrives.'_

The two were silent for a moment, pristine water gathering at their paws from where the rocks guided it into the spring, the sound it created like nature's lullaby. Although, once that moment passed, Lupus broke this silence, ' _You would risk—no, you would choose—to leave the pack just so that you can destroy Shade?'_

Rosa's lips twisted in a near human manner, though those mannerisms faded when she snapped her teeth at him. ' _He chose to betray us all. No alpha goes against the pack. Never.'_ Lupus did not reply. Nature suddenly twisted around them, its aura shifting as it greets its new guest. Rosa's ears twitched again, alert, and even Lupus narrowed his eyes at the change, questioning how to stop blood and anger from being shed; he found no answer. Inclining her head, Rosa pushed her body closer to the wet crag, watching and predicting her target's movements with immense precision.

Tiny footsteps crunched against the crisp autumn leaves that were littered across the dew covered grass, the sounds that they created nearly as silent as the creatures that watched on. The dawn was filled with alabaster light, filtering through the slightly wilted leaves. The skies above seemed to be a palette of deep blues and violets churning behind grey clouds, reflecting the light perfectly. For early autumn, it was unnaturally cold. Despite this, however, the trees were warm with colour, leaves submerged in gold and orange. The figure emerged from between these trees, sunlight reflecting off of the leaves in such a way that they lit up the child's face.

He was young, almost too young to be out in the forest at such a time, but he was out there anyway. Rosa's lips parted to reveal two sets of pearly white teeth, golden orbs following the stunning dark blue of the child's. Lupus waited from behind, knowing that he would not convince Rosa to stop now, but was prepared to intervene at any moment. As the child continued through the forest, brushing his hand across the cold texture of the bark, he made his way towards the holy Spring that he always enjoyed visiting. However, he always had to do this alone, for there was something strange about having the silence disturbed by others.

He knelt down in the waters of the spring, unaware of the two pairs of eyes watching on above him, running his fingers along the surface of the pristine water. He didn't necessarily believe in the concept of a light spirit residing here, yet he still found it peaceful after being surrounded by the entire village nearby. It wasn't that he didn't like them, it was rather the opposite, but he rarely had time to let his mind wander; something that he had come to crave since the loss of his parents. Also, he had seen a spirit nearby that gave him comfort too, a golden beast with one glowing crimson eye. He didn't understand why it was not hostile, but its presence gave them a profound connection that he had told no one else about.

And that connection was what made Rosa livid.

Shade, the leader of her pack, had been interacting with the boy more and more within the prior months. So much so that he began to ignore his own pack. Shade was nothing more than a spirit, the rest of his pack living and kicking still, however he had gained the respect that he deserved and could become physical when he needed to. And yet, now he was spending so much time with a human—the same race that killed them for sport—without explaining why. Rosa had searched the child out, and now she would not only see what the fuss was all about, but end their "profound connection."

Within moments of the boy's arrival, however, the trees shifted in the light breeze and caused the child to glance up in surprise. He was sensitive to the world around him, it seemed, and as much as it intrigued Rosa it also made her even more mad. Why was he more special than their pack? Shade was not the leader Rosa needed, and she would show him that even if it sacrificed her place in the pack itself. The boy's cobalt eyes widened in awe and recognition as Shade crept around the edge of the spring. Rosa's eyes widened a little in surprise; she wanted the death to be quick and without anyone to witness it.

Though with Lupus' presence and Shade's entrance, it was already going badly.

The green gill fishes in the spring scurried away as Shade made his way through the water. They could not see him, but his aura was enough for them to swim away. Green and red leaves bobbed across the surface of the clear water, although Shade paid them no mind. The child was still, his legs crossed and left hand stretching out to the golden wolf. Shade pressed his nose into the hand, lips curling up into a peaceful smile as they met. No words were said, but no words were needed.

Rosa despised it.

 _'One more chance, pup,'_ said Lupus. _'This is not for you to meddle in. Shade does nothing for no reason.'_ Rosa said nothing, and Lupus knew why. He went to stop her, but everything moved so fast.

She pressed her hind legs down and leaped into the air with impressive height. The sight caught the attention of both Shade and the child. Shade, sensing Rosa's foreboding gleam in her eyes, pulled himself away from the boy and scratched her away before her paws could meet pale skin. The child pulled himself away in fear, ready to call for help or run if need be. The two wolves acted on two different needs that crossed, attacking and protecting the boy. Rosa sunk her teeth into Shade's now-physical flank, forcing back a whimper when sharp claws found her eye. Thankfully it was protected by the lid, but barely.

 _'Why are you attacking him?!'_ Shade demanded as Rosa attempted to slip around the pack leader and go for the child again. _'Your blinding hatred of humans is fueling such foolish efforts.'_

 _'You ignore your pack for a bag of flesh,'_ she hissed back, playing on the offensive once Shade blocked her path to the boy. _'He is not important to our survival! You will know the loss that you have made our pack feel!'_

 _'But he is!'_ Shade cried back, yelping as her teeth caught his face. ' _That boy is important to fighting back against the darkness that will befall this kingdom in years to come. We cannot stop it, but we can prepare. My duty has been to protect the boy since birth, and now your prejudice has gotten in the way of this. You will leave and never return to this pack as long as you live. You will not touch this kingdom's final hope.'_ A part of Rosa faltered, causing her to take a deep slash to her stomach. Shade, as he was a spirit, did have connections that no other animal seemed to have. Was this just another one of them?

No. No, Shade had betrayed the pack and left them to fend for themselves. Of course they knew how to do so, for they weren't weak whelps any longer, but it didn't change the fact that their alpha betrayed them for a human; a human child who was supposed to be "their last hope."

She scoffed internally, nipping at Shade's ear. _'I care not for a hope that will save us in the future. You needed your pack right now!'_ She clawed at his already injured eye, barely managing to overpower him despite his inner strength. _'I will leave the pack and never return, Shade, but not until the kid is gone from the world!'_

As if sensing his demise, the boy went to whip out a small blade that he kept in his boot. His adoptive father, Rusl, would never let him go out alone and unarmed, so he decided to check one of those off. To his dismay, the knife slipped out during the scuffle and lay in the waters a few metres away. He jumped towards it, stretching his arm out for it, though Rosa witnessed this and struck. Headbutting her ex-alpha, she soared through the air and knocked the child down before he could grab his weapon. He raised his hand to push her off, but received puncture wounds on his wrist instead.

"Link…!" a voice yelled from the distance. Rosa didn't care. Her anger at Shade, at the child, at her pack, at everything that she could think of went into every attack. He tried his hardest not to scream, something that she would have respected out of context, but it was futile. She clawed at his skin, sinking her already stained teeth into his chest, pawing away a greatly injured Shade when he tried to save his charge. Whoever had called out before was growing nearer, so she had to retreat before she was killed herself.

Rosa stared into the boy's wide eyes, a gleam slightly dulled over by pain still shining despite her vicious attacks. His cobalt eyes shone as if he understood why she was tearing him apart. It didn't mask the agony that he felt, but as his eyes grew heavier and colours began to merge, he somehow managed to understand her in a way not even her pack could. This sight alone stunned her enough to be knocked down by Shade as the figure came within metres of them now, but all she could do was flee.

And as she ran, she could have sworn that the boy's hand was glowing.

She could no longer think of her revenge, but his innocent eyes.

A tall man with a set jaw fell to his knees in the spring, not recognising the golden wolf but trusting it somewhat as it tried to protect his adopted son. Link had long since fallen limp in the water, lips parted as he fought for his life. Rusl, having no tools with him to help his son, scooped the child into his strong arms and raced away from the edge of Faron Woods, breath puffing out around him in a thick fog. The two left behind a trail of water and blood, though Rusl was far from caring about what was behind him. All that he cared for was Link, whose clothes were wet and sticky with his own blood, and nothing else.

Shade watched on, comprehending the fact that his presence in the human village would not make matters any better for him or his charge. As he stood in the water, once perfectly clear now swirling with crimson and lapping against his fur, bowed his head and prayed to the Goddesses that once meddled with his life that they would save the one who had to live for the future. He knew the pain that they boy was about to go through, but also knew that he had a strength that no one else had amongst the humans, and for that he prayed for the boy and the future of the realm that he once protected.

For Rosa she was racing away without hesitation, turning her anger at everything towards herself instead. How was she stupid enough to let her chance at revenge go to waste? Now she had lost her pack, her alpha, and was leaving enough blood behind to attract predators to the forest. She cursed at herself as she limped, rushing towards the nearby river in hopes of removing her scent and blood from the radars of other enemies. She could find the group of rogue wolves near Kakariko Village to patch herself up in case she was not healed by the time she reached there, and then she would return to Snowpeak with more of her kind.

She didn't need her pack; she could go alone and be free.

 _But his eyes…_

For some reason she couldn't get her mind off of it. She couldn't understand why, as they were no different than any other pair of blue eyes, however there was something about them that she could trust. Maybe what Shade said was true after all, but after all that the humans had done for her and her family, she couldn't care less if the Goddesses were looking down on him; they never looked down on her, so to see that a human was placed above her mother, father, and brother made her even angrier with everything.

She rested beneath a cherry blossom tree, its bark stripped down by the elements and its gold and orange leaves rustling in the breeze. The flock of trees were beside the river, giving her the cover that she needed if necessary as she licked her wounds. Not only did she let her mission fail, but she allowed herself to be injured heavily too. Rosa gazed up through the cracks in the leaves, the sapphire blue sky brightening as the sun rose towards its zenith. She only saws his eyes in the sky, although, and something about that terrified her. She shouldn't be thinking about the boy that she wanted to and probably did kill. It certainly wasn't guilt, as she never felt guilty for killing one for a reason.

Unless… there was no logical reason for killing him.

She rolled her eyes and pressed her back against the trunk, forcing herself to act properly. Of course she had a proper reason! She wouldn't have done so otherwise, and now the boy was dead so she could return to her homeland and be accepted with the grace and dignity that she deserved and was not given by her true pack. Rosa would miss her companions, of course, but they had never suffered a loss like she had; and now she was free of the shackles that had hurt her for so long.

Either way, she would forget about all of this. It would not drag her down; _he_ would not drag her down.

And when Link woke up from his near-fatal wounds, he was surrounded by his adoptive family who were overjoyed to see him awake after being so close to death for a week. Rusl had already explained what had happened, and then their tiny village became much more alert to wolves. He spent days in silence, the wolf that attacked him terrifying his tiny form until he finally accepted it. Shade would still appear before him in his spirit form so he would not be driven away, and until the child was old enough to accept the destiny set out before him the golden wolf would forever protect him.

And for those long years, the shine in the boy's eyes never left Rosa.

But the shine in Rosa's eyes never left him either.

* * *

 _"The axe forgets, but the tree remembers."_

~African Proverb~


End file.
